[…] But his business background makes him an unlikely leader for an anticorporate movement. And Occupy Wall Street is a far cry from Mr. Shen’s work in China, where the government sought to suppress the student movement, sometimes with violence. New York’s protesters camp in the open air and march freely through Manhattan.

“Last time we wanted a different China, we got shot at,” said Mr. Shen. “America can still afford to do this nicely.”